Hate the Sinner
Posted by: forthrightmag <forthrightmag@...>
http://www.forthright.net
Going straight to the Cross
Say that again? It's not what we're accustomed to
hearing.
Hate the Sinner
by Randal Matheny
You've heard it said we should hate sin but love the
sinner. It's true. The phrase expresses an important
truth. But not the whole truth.
The word of God presents two, and only two, positions
one may assume before his goodness: submission and
rebellion. The Lord rewards submission with blessings,
with good, with his presence. He also brings upon the
rebellious his due: punishment and justice.
So we should not be so surprised at these words:
"The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes;
You hate all who do iniquity.
You destroy those who speak falsehood;
The Lord abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit"
(Psalm 5:5-6, NASB).
He who does not gather with the Lord, scatters. He who
scatters receives his full wrath. And he who gathers
rejoices, because the Lord defends his cause with
victory.
Can Only God Hate?
But the Lord may hate perfectly those who sin, but we
should not, you say? Read again.
Not only does the faithful say, "I hate the work of
those who fall away" (Psalm 101:3).
He may also rightfully declare, "I hate those who are
double-minded, But I love Your law" (Psalm 119:113).
And even more telling,
"Do I not hate those who hate You, O Lord? And do I not
loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with
the utmost hatred; They have become my enemies" (Psalm
139:21-22).
So what does all this mean? And how do we reconcile
hating one's enemy with Jesus' instructions to love
one's enemy? Are these railings merely a vengeful Old
Testament spirit, while we must show New Testament
grace?
Good Hate
Actually, we need both hatred and love toward our
enemies. Now let me explain.
First, hating the one who does evil takes sin
seriously. Is it really so easy to hate the sin and
love the sinner? Can we divvy up a person and his sin?
Sin is not some scab that can be quickly, albeit with
certain discomfort, picked off to reveal the real
person underneath. Sin is part and parcel of who we
are. Even after recovery, we must say we are sinners
(as per 1 Tim. 1:15).
Second, hating the evildoer is an expression of one's
loyalty to God. His enemies are our enemies. In fact,
they make themselves our enemies because we insist on
submission to God. One cannot pray for the victory of
God's cause without desiring the defeat of his
detractors.
Third, we are not speaking of our character, but God's
cause. Usually there is, in the context of hating the
evildoer, a declaration of the writer's integrity (see
Psalm 139:23-24) or a reverent appeal for help to
observe the commandments (see Psalm 119:114-120). The
question is not the perfect moral state of the
faithful, but the perfect righteousness of the Lord's
cause which he upholds. Hating one's enemy, properly
done (and it can and must be done properly), takes into
full account the only two positions possible toward
God's goodness.
Fourth, hatred of the evildoer does not take justice
into its own hands. It appeals to God. And while it
waits for God's judgment, it works to turn the wicked
from his way. It devotes itself to converting the
rebellious into a soul submissive to the will of God.
I can appreciate greatly the sentiment to hate sin and
love the sinner. But the Word goes beyond that easy
phrase to enter fully into the Sovereign Lord's cause
and work ceaselessly that his justice may come to all,
in every place.